Initial adjusting mechanism for gripping members



Sept. 25, 1956 R. c. HEINRICH INITIAL ADJUSTING MECHANISM FOR GRIPPING MEMBERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 14, 1955 llir lr INVENTOR ROBERT C.HEINR1CH ATTORNEYS Sept. 25, 1956 R. C. HEINRICH INITIAL ADJUSTING MECHANISM FOR GRIPPING MEMBERS Filed June 14, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1NVENTOR ROBERT C. HEINRICH ATTORNEYS United States Patent INITIAL ADJUSTING MECHANISM FOR GRIPPING NIEMBERS Robert C. Heinrich, Racine, Wis.

Application June 14, 1955, Serial No. 515,405

2 Claims. (Cl. 81--17.2)

This invention appertains to a fluid-operated vise, work holder or similar device in which the movable member is operated from a pneumatic or like motor.

In such work holders, jaws are movable toward one another upon admittance of fluid to the cylinders to tightly grip and hold the work. In many cases it is desirable to have some means for initially adjusting the jaws relative to one another to accommodate different sizes of work pieces.

It is, therefore, one of the primary objects of my invention to provide an efficient and simple means for ad justing the active length of a piston or diaphragm-operated rod carrying the jaw or pressing member, whereby said jaw or member can be initially adjusted relative to the work and prior to the gripping of the work.

A further salient object of my invention is to provide the push rod for the jaw or press member in two sections, namely a threaded rod section carried by the piston head and a threaded feed sleeve nut journaled in the jaw or press member and slidably carried by the frame of the device with a reversible ratchet mechanism for rotating the sleeve nut in a desired direction, whereby the jaw or member can be adjusted back and forth relative to the piston head and work.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel construction, arrangement and formation of parts, as will be hereinafter more specifically described and claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which drawings,

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a vise equipped with my invention, parts of the view being shown broken away and in section to illustrate structural detail, the parts in section being taken on the line 1--1 of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of a vise equipped with my invention, with parts thereof broken'away and in section, the section being taken on the line 2-2 of Figure l, loolo ing in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 3 is a multiplanar transverse sectional view through the vise taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows, and

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows and illustrating the reversible ratchet mechanism.

Referring to the drawings in detail, wherein similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the letter V indicates a vise or work holder embodying the principles of my invention. As illustrated, the vise V includes a frame 5 having a base plate 6 and end walls 7 and 8. The end walls 7 and 8 extend up from the terminals of the base plate 5 and the base plate has formed thereon laterally extending slotted ears 9 for the reception of holding elements, whereby the vise can be securely fastened to a bench or machine table. Securely anchored to the end walls 7 and 8 above the base plate 6 are a pair of spaced, longitudinally extending guide rods 10 on which are slidably mounted jaws 11 and 12 for movement toward and away from one another and into and out of gripping contact with a piece of work disposed between said jaws. Formed in the end walls 7 and 8 between the guide rods 10, are longitudinally aligned bearing openings 13 for slidably receiving a push or center rod 14. The push or center rods 14 are operatively connected, as will be hereinafter more fully pointed out, to the jaws 11 and 12, and the push rods in turn are reciprocated by fluid motors 15 and 16.

The motors 15 and 16 are of like construction and can be of any desired type. As illustrated, each motor includes a hollow casing 17 securely bolted, as at 18, to the frame 5 of the vise. A diaphragm 19 extends across each casing and held against the diaphragm by an expansion coil spring 20 is a piston head 21. Leading into the casing 17 is a conduit 22 and flow of air into the casing through the conduit is controlled by suitable valve mechanism, not illustrated. Obviously, upon admittance of air into the casing, the diaphragm, and consequently the piston head 21 are forced inwardly against the tension of the spring 20, and upon release of air the spring returns the piston head 21 and the diaphragm 19 to its normal position. The push or center rods 14 are operatively connected to the piston heads for movement therewith, and consequently, the jaws 11 and 12 are actuated from the piston heads.

My present invention relates specifically to the construction of the push or center rods 14 and the means for adjusting the active lengths of these rods 14, whereby the jaws 11 and 12 can be initially adjusted relative to one another and to the size of the work pieces being gripped. Hence, in accordance with my invention, each push or center rod 14 includes an adjusting screw section 23, which is rigidly secured to its piston head 21 and threaded on each screw 23 is an elongated sleeve feed nut 24'. In actual practice, of course, the sleeve nut 24 and the adjusting screw 23 are provided with mating triple lead threads. The sleeve feed nut 24 slidably and rotatably extends through its bearing opening 13. The inner end of each sleeve feed nut 24 has rigidly secured thereto for movement therewith, a ratchet head 25 and this head has formed thereon an annular row of ratchet teeth 26. The forward end of the head is rotatably fitted within a bearing opening 27, in an adjacent vise jaw, and to prevent displacement of the ratchet head from the jaw, the ratchet head is provided with an annular groove 28 which receives the inner end of a holding screw 29 threaded into a vise jaw. Rotatably mounted on the ratchet head 25 is a ratchet frame handle 30 pivotally carrying a reversible double toothed ratchet dog 31. T he dog 31 can be swung on its pivot to bring either one of the ratchet dog teeth into engagement with the ratchet wheel so as to turn the ratchet head and the sleeve feed nut in the desired direction. An expansion spring 32 is housed within the handle frame for holding the dog 31 in a select ed position.

In operation of my invention, it is merely necessary to swing the dog 31 into engagement with ratchet wheel for rotating the ratchet wheel in the desired direction and upon swinging the handle frame 30 back and forth the sleeve nut can be advanced or retracted, as the caste may be, to place the jaws in a desired adjusted position.

While I have shown my invention applied to a cert-.111. type of vise, it is to be understood that the principles of my invention can be utilized with any desired type of gripping device.

Changes in details may be made without departing from the function or the scope of this invention, but what I claim as new is:

1. In a vise including a frame having end walls, guide rods secured to the end walls, jaws slidably' mounted on the guide rods, a center push rod for each jaw, means carried by the end Walls for actuating the push rods, and each of said push rods including an adjusting screw, an elongated feed nut on said adjusting screw rotatably associated with an adjacent jaw, and a reversible ratchet mechanism operatively connected to the nut for rotating the nut in a desired direction.

2. In a device as defined in claim 1, and said ratchet mechanism being disposed between the adjacent jaw and end Wall.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Baldwin Aug. 11, 1925 Lindegren Mar. 28, 1944 Hugo et a1. Oct. 27, 1953 Geppert May 25, 1954 Wilson June 28, 1955 

